JFABNRGR said:I disagree with this completely. Hostages for trading of prisoners was not the main objective. If it was then no further bloodshed would have been made to include such horrific atrocities. Once blood is spilled the chances of getting them back decreases significantly.Faustus said:Nitro Power said:
I believe the hostages are already dead. You have heard nothing pertaining to proof of life.
The US might try to negotiate for the Americans release (provided my previous statement is not true), but Israel is not going to negotiate. They have said as much. If they did, after what they have said and they way they have acted, it would really enable the terrorists in the future. Perhaps more so than ever.
With that being said, I just cannot see Bibi not finishing what he started and backing up what he says.
Zero chance all the hostages are dead. They were the main objective along with the destruction and provoking a response that blows up the rapprochement started under Trump between Israel and the Sunni ruling regimes.
Hamas had hoped to trade some of the hostages for all the prisoners held by Israel, and at this point it's pretty much the only card they are holding, not that it will do them much good in the short term.
If you were correct we would have seen them protected from both the takers and the spectators instead we saw them raped, sodomized, beaten, spit on and photographed.
Sadly they were trophies.
I think the atrocities were to provoke an overwhelming response to blow up rapprochement and further radicalize the non-Hamas populous of Gaza. Well that and they wanted to do it anyway.
Previously the going rate was 1 Israeli hostage for 1,000 prisoners. I guess we will see down the road whether there are living hostages, or as you put it dead trophies.